COVID-19 update from CLECA – French and Italian updated information and measures.

CLECAT have issued two circulars to National Members with updated information on the Coronavirus outbreak within France and Italy.

Those updates are replicated together with the below:

Update from FEDESPEDI (Italy):

received Monday 9th March 2020:

On 8 March, the Italian Prime Minister signed a new Decree, in force as from 8 March to 3 April, extending the so-called red zone to the whole Lombardy region and to 14 provinces of Emilia-Romagna, Marche, Veneto and Piedmont (namely: Alessandria, Asti, Modena, Novara, Padova, Parma, Piacenza, Reggio nell’Emilia, Rimini, Pesaro e Urbino, Treviso, Venezia, Verbano-Cusio-Ossola and Vercelli).

The measures adopted to combat the spread of COVID-19 include, inter alia, “avoiding people entering and leaving the named territories and moving within them” with the only exceptions of movements motivated by “proven working needs or by situations of necessity or because of health reasons “.

When it comes to transport and logistics, an Explanatory Note has been published, confirming the following:

“the activity of transport operators is a working requirement: staff driving means of transport can therefore enter and leave the territories concerned and move within them, but limited to the needs of delivery or pick up of the goods. Thus, goods have freedom of entry and exit from the territories concerned.”

Later on, an Order by the Head of the Civil Protection Department clarified and confirmed that the travel limits apply only to natural persons, therefore “the measure is not applicable to transit and transport of freight and to all supply chains (production sites included) to and from the red zones”.

new update received Tuesday 10th March 2020:

In the evening of 9 March, the Italian Prime Minister signed a new Decree, in force as of today (10 March) until 3 April, extending the so-called red zone to the whole Italian territory.

The measures on transit, transport and supply chains, which were communicated yesterday (above) are confirmed.

For the sake of good order, you will find the measures below:

One of the measures adopted to combat the spread of COVID-19 is “avoiding people entering and leaving the named territories and moving within them” with the only exceptions of movements motivated by “proven working needs or by situations of necessity or because of health reasons”.

The activity of transport operators is a working requirement: staff driving means of transport can therefore enter and leave the Italian territory and move within it, but limited to the needs of delivery or pick up of the goods. Thus, goods have freedom of entry and exit from the Italian territory.

Travel limits apply only to natural persons, therefore the measure is not applicable to transit and transport of freight and to all supply chains (production sites included).

Update from TLF (France):

At this stage, the strategy consists in taking care of patients within the framework of a secure care pathway with the identification and monitoring of contact persons. The organization of care is more widely mobilized with, in particular, the launch of a second line of health facilities. Collective activities are impacted.

There is a lot of public information, health advice, public message (radios, train station, subway) and regular meetings with the government.

Last epidemiological point (dated 3pm; 05/03/202): 423 confirmed cases have been reported, of which 212 can be linked to a grouping of cases (50%). Six groupings of cases have been observed:

Grouping of cases on return from an organized trip to Egypt: 13 confirmed cases.

Preventive measures for shipping companies are made available to be put in place in exposed areas and the measures to be taken in the event of suspected infection by the new 2019 coronavirus (2019 n-CoV) on board of a ship flying under the French flag.

Bordeaux port: obligation to transmit the maritime declaration of health for all ships bound for the port of Bordeaux.

Legal measures are also put in place, including the following:

The COVID-19 coronavirus is considered by the French state to be “force majeure”, and companies with state procurement contractswill not be penalized for late delivery. Since 2 March, the Public Investment Bank (BPI) has been responsible for all the loans requested by SMEs in order to support them during this difficult period.

An economic continuity unit was activated on 3 March at the Ministry of Economy. This unit will make it possible to obtain all the necessary information on the economic situation of the country in real time, to better manage the impact of this health crisis on the French economy by taking daily decisions that might prove necessary.